M&G Real Estate has received $250m (€229m) from its parent company’s life insurance division, which will be used to fund living sector real estate projects.
Ciaran Mulligan, CIO of M&G’s life business, said: “Within our £126bn (€150.8bn) portfolio we are actively seeking to increase our diversification across asset classes, geographically and in sub-sectors where we see the opportunity to generate enhanced returns over the long-term.
“Through our collaboration with M&G Real Estate, we are investing in more Asian real estate and, specifically, in the residential sector as institutional investors increasingly play a role in providing high quality living accommodation in gateway cities across the UK, Europe and Asia.”
With the latest mandate, M&G Life’s exposure to Asian real estate now stands at $2.5bn.
M&G Real Estate Asia – which has been actively investing in the residential sector across the region for over a decade – has formalised its Asia Pacific living sector with the appointment of David Askham to head the business and spearhead its expansion into Asia Pacific living sector.
The manager has also bought three 15-storey residential towers with 378 apartments in Osaka for $68m.
Martin Towns, deputy global head of M&G Real Estate, said: “Expanding into Asia Pacific living is a natural progression, leveraging our established $1.2bn exposure to residential assets in Asia.”
Jing Dong Lai, CEO and CIO of M&G Real Estate Asia, said: “Our acquisition of prime multi-family assets in Osaka reinforces our long-term belief in Japan’s residential sector.
“This investment is a direct reflection of our conviction in the living sector and our vision of building a diversified, high-quality residential portfolio in Asia to complement our existing capabilities.”
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